Over the years, Buster Olney has gotten to know Freddie Freeman.
And for the ESPN MLB insider, nothing about his interactions with Freeman suggested he had an issue with Ronald Acuña Jr.
Acuña, who is recovering from a torn ACL, made waves this week when he indicated on an Instagram Live that he and Freeman had butted heads, specifically around clubhouse rules, and cited an incident when veterans made him take eye black off.
Both Acuña and Freeman now have addressed it, and seem intent on putting the situation behind them. Acuña, for his part, said the media blew the comments out of proportion.
And on the “Baseball Tonight” podcast, Olney said Freeman only had positive things to say about Acuña.
"I will say this, the whole thing surprised me," Olney said. "Because I’ve talked to Freddie Freeman a million times since Ronald Acuña Jr. came to the big leagues. And when a young player comes up I’ll go to veterans and say hey what’s that guy like -- off the record to give the player comfort. Freddie Freeman in our private conversations has been nothing but glowing about Ronald Acuña Jr. I never picked up on a bit of tension."
Ultimately, there doesn’t seem to be much, if any, bad blood between the two. It could be as simple as they respected one another as players and teammates, but didn’t necessarily see eye to eye on certain issues.
Whatever the case, it’s all moot now. Acuña will be a fixture in Atlanta for years to come, while Freeman will spend the back end of his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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